Turn FreeBSD into a Multimedia Workstation

I recently purchased a shiny new PC and decided to turn it into a
multimedia desktop. I spend far too much time in research and networking;
I figured it was time to delve deeper into the world of Flash, DVD, and
mp3s.

FreeBSD still seems to get a bad rap as a desktop. The impression is still
out there that sure, it's a rock-solid server, but you need a master's
degree in rocket science in order to get a sound card or Java to work.
Hogwash. Granted, you still have to take the time to build and configure
the components you desire, but that is the beauty of FreeBSD. No company
is deciding for you what you want in your desktop, and you have the
satisfaction of knowing you built your system your way. Not to mention the
literally hundreds of multimedia applications to choose from, some which put
their commercial counterparts to shame.

In today's article, I'll concentrate on a fresh install that is totally
up-to-date, then move on to integrating Java, Flash, and streaming
multimedia into a browser. I'll be taking the slow, systematic route, so
follow along and pick out the bits that are interesting to you.

Being the paranoid person that I am, I like to install from CD, reboot
into a firewalled system, than CVSup to the latest sources. Before
starting any install, I always copy the following onto a floppy:

I then start the install from CD and choose to install everything, including
the ports collection. Once bin has been installed, I press Alt-F4, which
now has a prompt. I then mount the floppy and copy over the first three files:

Usually, by the time I've unmounted the floppy, the install is also
finished and prompting me for post-install configuration. I then reboot and
watch the messages to ensure that my firewall rules successfully load.

Now that I'm protected by a firewall, I'll go out on the Internet and
download the latest sources and today's port collection. First, I'll
install the cvsup-without-gui utility: